Get an estimate for your video project in less than a minute.
Get an estimate for your video project in less than a minute.
Animation studios develop characters, design worlds and produce moving images for films, series and commissioned videos. Their work ranges from computer-generated features to hand-drawn stories and physical puppets. This guide groups 15 studios by the animation they are associated with, explains how their work differs and shows where a business looking for an animated video should begin its search.
| What are the best animation studios? The best animation studios include Walt Disney Animation Studios, Pixar Animation Studios, DreamWorks Animation, Illumination and Sony Pictures Animation. Studio Ghibli and Toei Animation lead in anime. Aardman and LAIKA are the best-known stop motion studios. Cartoon Saloon and Titmouse stand out for 2D work. |
An animation studio is a business that organizes the creative and technical work needed to produce animation. That can include development, writing, visual design, storyboarding, animation, finishing and sound.
Some studios develop their own stories and characters. Others make work commissioned by a broadcaster, producer or brand. A feature-film studio, a television team and a commercial animation company can share techniques while working to very different briefs.
Not all work happens inside one building. A studio may keep story and design in-house while partnering with other teams for parts of production. Outsourcing does not remove the need for clear creative supervision. Characters must remain consistent and shots must belong to the same world.
For a business buyer, the useful question is what the team actually delivers. A recognizable entertainment catalogue does not tell you whether a studio accepts commissioned business projects. Look for relevant examples and an approval process that lets you review the script, design and motion before expensive finishing work begins.
On our animation projects, the storyboard is where I want every disagreement to happen. Changing a sketch takes minutes. Changing a finished animated scene can take days. So we walk clients through the board and the animatic before anyone starts the final animation. I ask them to look at timing, order and what each scene needs to show. Once that is approved, the rest of the production moves faster. The large studios in this list do the same thing for the same reason.
This list of animation studios groups recognizable entertainment producers separately from the business-animation option.
| Studio | Founded | Based in | Main style | Known for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Walt Disney Animation Studios | 1923 | Burbank | 3D and a hand-drawn history | Frozen, Moana |
| Pixar Animation Studios | 1986 | Emeryville | 3D | Toy Story, Inside Out |
| DreamWorks Animation | 1994 | Glendale | 3D | Shrek, How to Train Your Dragon |
| Illumination | 2007 | Santa Monica | 3D | Despicable Me, Sing |
| Sony Pictures Animation | 2002 | Culver City | 3D and mixed visual approaches | Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse |
| Warner Bros. Animation | 1980 | Burbank | TV and 2D | Animaniacs |
| Nickelodeon Animation Studio | 1992 | Burbank | TV, 2D and 3D | SpongeBob SquarePants |
| Cartoon Network Studios | 1994 | Burbank | TV and 2D | Adventure Time |
| Titmouse | 2000 | Los Angeles | TV and 2D | The Legend of Vox Machina |
| Cartoon Saloon | 1999 | Kilkenny | 2D | The Secret of Kells, Wolfwalkers |
| Studio Ghibli | 1985 | Koganei | Anime, predominantly hand-drawn | Spirited Away, My Neighbor Totoro |
| Toei Animation | 1948 (Toei name since 1956) | Tokyo | Anime | Dragon Ball, One Piece |
| Aardman | 1972 | Bristol | Stop motion and other techniques | Wallace & Gromit, Shaun the Sheep |
| LAIKA | 2005 | Hillsboro | Stop motion | Coraline, Kubo and the Two Strings |
| Creamy Animation | 2009 | Vancouver, BC | Business animation and motion graphics | Animated videos for Warner Brothers, Logitech and Fujitsu |
The categories describe recurring work rather than strict technical limits. A studio can combine hand-drawn elements, computer animation and physical references within one project. A television studio may also make features or specials. “Based in” describes an organizational base rather than every location involved in production. Confirm the flagged company details and credits before publication. The final business entry remains an editorial decision from the brief.
Animation studios differ by the work they produce, the medium they use and who commissions it.
Our guide to types of animation styles helps separate the visual approach from the kind of business making it. Choosing a studio becomes easier once you can describe the actual output you need. “We want animation” leaves too many decisions open. A clear audience, runtime, reference style and delivery list give a production team something concrete to assess.
These major animation studios are familiar names in feature production, with different approaches to story and visual design.
Walt Disney Animation Studios is a feature-animation studio with both hand-drawn and computer-animation traditions. Its history should not be reduced to its current production technique.
Frozen and Moana are recognizable examples of computer-animated features. Character acting, music, staging and environment design work together to make their stories readable. A character’s silhouette and gesture can communicate before dialogue explains anything.
For a producer, the useful lesson is that animation starts with story and performance. Technical polish supports those decisions. It does not replace them. A well-rendered scene still needs a clear emotional or narrative purpose.
Disney Animation is also distinct from Pixar. They sit within the same wider corporate family but operate as separate creative studios. Check the studio credit instead of treating every animated Disney release as work from the same team.
Known for
Frozen and Moana are familiar feature examples. The studio also has a substantial hand-drawn catalogue that should be distinguished from its later 3D work.
Pixar Animation Studios is a feature-animation studio strongly associated with computer-generated character storytelling. Its films use visual design and performance to make imagined worlds feel internally consistent.
Toy Story and Inside Out offer different ways to build a world around a clear premise. The audience learns its rules through character behaviour and consequences. That clarity matters more than showing every technical possibility in a scene.
Comparing 2D vs 3D animation helps explain the medium, but the technique is only part of the result. Posing, timing, sound and editorial choices determine whether the scene communicates.
For businesses, the practical lesson is to settle the idea before requesting detailed animation. A short commissioned video needs the same connection between what the viewer sees and what they are meant to understand.
Known for
Toy Story and Inside Out are recognizable references. Both make abstract production choices serve a readable character story.
DreamWorks Animation is a feature-animation studio associated with a broad range of computer-animated stories. Its catalogue contains different tones rather than a single fixed comic style.
Shrek and How to Train Your Dragon show how character design and movement can support very different worlds. Broad comedy asks for different timing from a quiet interaction or an action sequence.
The producer’s lesson is to choose references precisely. Saying you want a studio’s “look” can be too broad to guide a team. Identify the particular qualities you mean: expressive acting, textured environments, fast comedy or restrained camera movement.
A useful reference conversation describes those qualities without asking another team to reproduce protected characters or closely copy a finished scene. It creates a shared direction while leaving space for original design.
Known for
Shrek and How to Train Your Dragon are familiar examples. Their different tones show why one studio name is not a complete creative brief.
Illumination is a feature-animation company associated with accessible character comedy and recognizable visual identities. Simple shapes and clear expressions can help a scene read quickly.
Despicable Me and Sing are useful examples for studying character presentation. Distinct silhouettes, performance and voice give a viewer fast cues about personality and relationships.
That clarity takes planning. A simple-looking character can still require substantial design, rigging and animation work. Rigging means building the controls that animators use to pose a digital character. The apparent simplicity of the image does not describe the effort behind it.
For a commissioned video, choose character detail according to the communication task. More surface texture will not fix an unclear action or a script that introduces too many ideas at once.
Known for
Despicable Me and Sing are recognizable titles. Their character-led presentation is a useful reference for clarity and comic timing.
Sony Pictures Animation develops and produces animated features with varied visual approaches. It is useful to distinguish the producing studio from other companies contributing animation production or effects.
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is a familiar example of a film that challenges the assumption that 3D animation must resemble polished realism. Graphic marks, texture and changes in motion treatment contribute to its visual language.
The lesson is to make those choices coherent. Combining techniques works when they support the world and the story. Adding visual effects simply because they are available can make a short business video harder to follow.
When reviewing a reference, ask what the technique achieves. Does it separate characters, suggest an emotional state or make a transition understandable? That answer is more useful than asking for a fashionable surface treatment.
Known for
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is a recognizable reference. Its visual construction offers a useful example of multiple techniques supporting one screen language.
Television and hand-drawn animation teams build characters and production systems that can support both individual stories and returning series.
Warner Bros. Animation is an animation operation associated with television and other screen work. It should be distinguished from the wider Warner Bros. film business and other similarly named animation labels.
Animaniacs offers a reference for expressive posing and comic timing. In television production, characters need designs that remain readable across different scenes and artists.
Model sheets document those proportions and expressions. They help a wider team draw the same character consistently without removing the animator’s performance choices. Clear references are useful in commissioned animation too.
Known for
Animaniacs is a recognizable association. Check the specific series or version because production arrangements and credits can differ.
Nickelodeon Animation Studio produces animation associated with the Nickelodeon television identity. Its programmes can use different techniques and involve external production partners.
SpongeBob SquarePants is a familiar reference for strong character silhouettes and exaggerated expression. A distinctive design helps a returning character remain recognizable even in a brief shot.
For production buyers, the lesson is to approve a visual system rather than only one appealing frame. Characters must work from several angles and through the actions the script requires. A design that looks good in a still image can create problems once animation begins.
Known for
SpongeBob SquarePants is a recognizable title. Confirm the producing entity and relevant credits when adding any further examples.
Cartoon Network Studios is a television-animation studio associated with creator-led animated series. Its name is distinct from the television channel and from the wider group carrying the brand.
Adventure Time provides a reference for readable designs and an expandable story world. A simple-looking environment can hold many different stories when its rules and characters are clear.
Do not infer a current physical address or organizational structure from an older article. Those details need fresh verification. For this guide, the useful focus is the studio’s production identity and the work attached to it.
Known for
Adventure Time is a familiar association. Its design economy offers a practical example of clarity without visual overloading.
Titmouse is an animation production company associated with television and other animated work. Its projects demonstrate that one studio can support very different visual identities.
The Legend of Vox Machina is a recognizable reference. Action animation needs readable staging as well as detailed drawings. The viewer should understand where characters are and what changes during the sequence.
For a business video, that principle applies to a process animation or product demonstration. If the audience cannot follow the movement, adding more visual detail will not solve the problem. Plan the action clearly in the storyboard and timed preview.
Known for
The Legend of Vox Machina is a useful example. Check each production’s credits rather than assuming one technique describes the whole studio.
Cartoon Saloon is an animation studio associated with distinctive hand-drawn feature storytelling. Its films offer useful references for graphic composition and purposeful visual simplification.
The Secret of Kells and Wolfwalkers demonstrate how shapes, patterns and line can form a consistent screen world. Detailed realism is not the only way to create depth or emotional weight.
For a producer, the lesson is to make the design approach specific to the story. A visual style should help the audience understand the place, character or idea. It should do more than decorate a script that could belong to any project.
Known for
The Secret of Kells and Wolfwalkers are recognizable features. Both are useful references for an intentionally graphic visual language.
Anime studios work across many genres and visual approaches rather than one uniform style.
Studio Ghibli is an animation studio strongly associated with hand-drawn feature films. Its work is useful to examine for acting, environmental detail and the space allowed around ordinary actions.
Spirited Away and My Neighbor Totoro are familiar references. Quiet actions can establish character and place without relying on constant dialogue or rapid cutting.
The practical lesson is to give important moments enough time to read. A short commissioned video still needs rhythm. If every second introduces another graphic, the viewer may never understand which detail matters most.
Known for
Spirited Away and My Neighbor Totoro are recognizable titles. They offer different examples of atmosphere and character observation.
Toei Animation is an anime production company associated with long-running screen properties. Series production depends on continuity across characters, teams and recurring visual rules.
Dragon Ball and One Piece are familiar associations. Specific series, films and adaptations have their own credits, so avoid treating an entire property as one unchanged production.
Our guide to best anime studios gives a more focused starting point for comparing companies in this category. In this broader list, Toei illustrates the difference between producing a sustained series and making a single standalone film.
Known for
Dragon Ball and One Piece are recognizable properties. Verify the particular screen title before using it as a production example.
Stop motion studios create movement by photographing physical subjects in small changes between frames.
Aardman is an animation studio strongly associated with physical character animation and visual comedy. Its work includes stop motion and other techniques, so the whole catalogue should not be labelled clay animation.
Wallace & Gromit and Shaun the Sheep are familiar references. A glance, a pause or a small change in posture can communicate an entire joke.
Claymation describes animation using clay or similar malleable material. It is one part of stop motion. Puppets may also contain internal structures and other materials that help them hold a pose.
Known for
Wallace & Gromit and Shaun the Sheep are recognizable associations. Their performance choices are useful references for visual storytelling with limited dialogue.
LAIKA is a feature-animation studio known for stop motion combined with digital production tools. Physical animation and digital effects can support the same finished scene.
Coraline and Kubo and the Two Strings are recognizable examples. Puppet performance, miniature environments, lighting and finishing all contribute to the result.
The practical lesson is to avoid a false choice between handmade work and technology. A production can photograph real materials and still use digital tools to remove supports, assemble elements or complete effects. What matters is whether the finished image remains coherent.
Known for
Coraline and Kubo and the Two Strings are familiar feature examples. Verify title-specific techniques before describing how an individual shot was made.
Business animation studios produce commissioned videos around an organization’s audience and communication goal.
Creamy Animation is an animation studio founded in 2009 and headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia. It also has a U.S. office in Vancouver, Washington. It produces animated videos, product demos and motion graphics for businesses in the US and Canada.
Its clients include Fujitsu, Logitech, Warner Brothers, RBC, Blockdaemon, IISD and MEC. Creamy Animation is our sister company. It shares a founder with Mammothic Films.
Known for
Animated videos for brands such as Warner Brothers, Logitech, Fujitsu and RBC. The studio focuses on business animation rather than feature films or TV series.
Businesses can compare animated video production companies by relevant examples and approval process. The guide to best animation companies in Canada offers a geographically focused starting point. Ask who handles script, design, animation and final delivery rather than assuming every service is included.
An animation studio builds a film through staged decisions that become progressively harder to change.
Studying famous animators helps show how performance principles carry across techniques. For commissioned work, the approval checkpoints matter just as much. A script revision before storyboarding is usually simpler than the same change after characters have been animated and finished.
Disney Animation, Pixar, DreamWorks, Illumination and Sony Pictures Animation are five widely recognized feature-animation studios. “Big five” is a convenient grouping rather than an official global ranking. It leaves out important television, anime and stop motion producers. Use the group to begin a comparison of familiar feature companies rather than as a complete definition of the animation industry.
The best studio depends on the kind of work you are evaluating. Feature storytelling, television production, anime, stop motion and commissioned business videos require different comparisons. Look at relevant films or portfolio examples and identify what you value: acting, design, timing or production approach. A studio’s fame does not establish that it accepts or suits your particular project.
There is no single authoritative top ten across every animation category. This guide begins with Disney Animation, Pixar, DreamWorks, Illumination, Sony Pictures Animation, Warner Bros. Animation, Nickelodeon Animation Studio, Cartoon Network Studios, Titmouse and Cartoon Saloon. That is the article’s editorial order. It is not a ranking of quality, revenue or influence. The later entries cover other important production traditions.
“Largest” requires a stated measure such as workforce, revenue or production output. Those figures can change and can include different parts of a corporate group. This article does not use them to rank studios. A feature producer and a television production network also work in different ways. Compare like-for-like operations and use current, attributable data before making a size claim.
Disney Animation and Pixar are separate creative studios within the wider Disney organization. They have different production histories, teams and film catalogues. Frozen is associated with Disney Animation while Toy Story is associated with Pixar. The distributor or corporate brand on a release does not replace the individual studio credit. Check that credit when identifying who made a film.
Aardman and LAIKA are familiar stop motion feature names. Other teams specialize in series, shorts, puppet construction or commercial work. Stop motion can use clay, puppets, objects or mixed materials, often with digital finishing. The companion guide separates those production roles and techniques in more detail.
Commercial animation companies and specialist production teams make commissioned 3D videos for businesses. A famous feature studio is not automatically available for that work. Compare relevant product, process or character examples and confirm what the proposal includes. Our guide to best 3D animation companies is a more useful starting point for a business commission than an entertainment-only studio list.
Match the studio to the kind of production you need. A film catalogue tells you about storytelling and visual work, but it does not describe every service a business buyer requires. For a commissioned project, bring a clear audience, message and delivery list. Then compare relevant examples and the approval process that will carry the idea from script to finished animation.
Larry is the Founder and Producer at Mammothic Films, with more than 15 years of production experience. He leads a team that creates story-driven videos for businesses and brands. A marketer, designer, and animator, Larry has overseen the production of more than 1,500 videos for Fujitsu, Logitech, Warner Brothers, NFL, Blockdaemon, Astronomer, Canonical, and 370+ other companies in Canada, the United States, and around the world.
Larry is a devout Christian who believes in placing God first, and that everything else is a blessing that comes from serving Him. When he’s not working, he’s hanging out with his wife and three kids, playing the piano, or sightseeing.
